Cosmic Divine Crystalline: Before the Awakening
by Eto Yoshimura G
Summary: This story tells who created the Gorgon Family and why. The truth of the main villain of the CDC story. Includes spoilers to some things. The year is 32 BC. A long time ago before the events of the main story.
1. Chapter 1

Cosmic Divine Crystalline: Before the Awakening

"You have a destiny..."

Ardyn woke up and sat up from where he was sleeping under a large oak tree. The wind blew against the golden grass around him as it seemed to be Fall. Leaves come down around him and he just sighed rubbing his face seeing that morning was near anyways.

Ardyn looked the same, yet longer hair.

He walked over to pick up a bag of his stuff going into it and pulling out a biscuit of sorts and eating it and once he finished he picked up the bag carrying it with him and walking off from the tree.

Later on, it is morning at a market somewhere in the desert. At the market was many people walking around and some selling or buying things.

When Ardyn came in, everyone stopped what they were doing and clapped and cheered that he was there.

Ardyn just smiled at them and waved and went on with his business going up to a stall and purchasing some fruit.

"Excuse me." An old woman asked him approaching him.

"Ah, yes young lady, what can I do for you?" He asked smiling and giving her quite a compliment.

"Oh come now." She chuckled. "My son is not well and I fear the star scourge has got to him." She said now a bit worried.

The star scourge was a deadly curse, known as that but also known as black blood. Demon blood. It was an infection back in those days of the time that could plague the entire world of men and women. Ardyn was the only known man with the gift to heal and save people from this terrible curse.

"Where does he live." He asked her.

She led him to one of the homes there and there was a man whose body was being taken over by a black veiny substance in his body and his teeth on one side was turning sharp. He was beginning to transform.

"Oh no!" The old woman said in fear.

Ardyn simply smiled patting the woman's shoulder and approached the man. Ardyn touched the man's head and closed his eyes and eased the man's pain with his incredible healing powers and then the man's body began to turn to normal. Ardyn sucked the darkness away.

"You look like a brand new man." Ardyn said patting his shoulder as the man was astonished.

Both the old woman and the man hugged one another and Ardyn handed them the basket of fruit he bought and walked out without a word. The two offered him all they had, but he simply walked off not wanting anything of what they wanted.

People cheered for him as he walked away and yet he went on with his business going back to the stall and paying for the same fruit for himself.

He was the Chosen One back in those days.

The prophecy says that someone will end the Star Scourge and darkness but it spoke of one thing to do this, The Cosmic Divine Crystalline. Something that was unknown of what it meant, and there wasn't much readable after that.

He sat nearby the village eating his fruit and then smiled noticing a woman approach him.

This woman looked almost like Serenity in fact but with golden hair and her hair was very long as Serenity's only reached to neck length. It was shocking to the resemblance of her to look identical to Serenity. Yet this was back such a long time ago.

"Hello, Gratia!" Ardyn said standing up and both of them hugged placing their foreheads upon one another.

Both were lovers and planned marriage in December at some time near what would later be Christmas.

"I heard about yesterday with those ten men and women nearly transformed. Yet I heard at night you can see them waiting to grab someone and either mark them or eat them." Gratia said worriedly.

"It's why everyone has to keep flame torches around the villages and homes and their camps. No one must go out alone." Ardyn said rubbing her shoulders.

"Why do you go off on your own then?" She asked him.

"Because if I draw them to me I can destroy them. I love playing bait, you know this." He chuckled.

They both relaxed together as he offered her the remaining fruit and looked on at the town nearby.

Then his gaze looked toward the desert kingdom in the distance.

"Your brother is sending more soldiers to kill more of the demons when they appear at night. And he has soldiers kill people in the day that might potentially turn into a demon." Gratia said with a sigh and rubbing the temple of her head.

"He won't listen to me." Ardyn said.

"It's worth a try to suggest an action of looking into the Cosmic Divine Crystalline." Gratia said.

"He would say it's a fool's search to ever find such a prophecy." Ardyn said standing up and helping her up.

"Please go and talk to him?" She asked him.

Both held one another and he nodded.

"I will go. Stay safe okay?" He asked and both shared a kiss before he walked off toward the desert kingdom miles away.

It took him a days walk to reach it and once it was morning he put the torches he had out and walked toward the Kingdom that ruled the entire region.

Ardyn was escorted by the soldiers and entered the throne room where his brother, the king sat.

"What do you want Ardyn, I'm a busy man." His brother said.

"Somnus, I have a solution to the star scourge. We should just focus on the demons themselves to the source." Ardyn said.

"No. We will lose soldiers and resources that way. We should just keep protecting our villages and kill anyone who becomes infected." Somnus said.

"Those are innocent lives Somnus! I can cure them!" Ardyn shouted.

"Yes you have but you suck the demons inside of you and not get rid of them." Somnus said frowning.

"Because brother, my gift from God is to cure, not to destroy. You know this." He said to Somnus.

"This is why father never granted you to rule the kingdom even though you are the oldest. You don't use your mind as I do." Somnus said to him with a smirk.

Ardyn backhanded his brother and the soldiers moved in only for Somnus to raise his hand to told them not to intervene.

"You had soldiers kill a little girl and her mother when I was going to save them. I was going to save them! I got there only a minute after what your men did!" Ardyn yelled.

"That is on you brother." Somnus said going back to his throne.

"God granted me to become king, did he not? He gives me the blessings of what I do." Somnus said to Ardyn.

"Blasphemy." Ardyn shouted.

"Carry on with what you do Ardyn. But I will do what I do as I rule. You are the peoples' prophet so why don't you go heal people and get out of my sight please." Somnus said looking to his soldiers.

Ardyn got the point and said nothing just walking out on his own.

Ardyn walked away from the kingdom and once he got far enough he fell to his knee's punching the ground in tears crying.

"That little girl had a purpose!" He yelled gritting his teeth.

He felt the darkness inside of him try to take him over but he quickly fought it and stood up and let out a sigh looking at the sky and smiled to himself.

"May you be at peace young lady." He said and walked back.

The star scourge was residing in him as he had to save people, it was his gift. Yet it did make him wonder if it would be up to him to destroy this threat on his own and he knew he had to try.


	2. Chapter 2

The demons of the starscourge would plague the lands and Ardyn knew it would consume the entire planet and more. The starscourge was a plague, a curse. It's purpose was only in the dark for demons to spawn everywhere to claim the planet, and spawned from the underworld itself. These creatures varied of different types, some small and some giant. They looked worse than monsters, they would scare a grown man. These demons, however, could curse humans or kill them depending on what they wanted to do. Their goal was to take over the planet and to turn it into total darkness, but their true plan was to consume the entire universe in darkness to turn all things into demons. Each of these demons have incredible powers and weapons to be ready to claim what they believe is theirs. Everything.

Once it inflicts a human or other species, it will consume and turn them into a demon making them mindless and suffering in their souls. Their are two things to prevent this, the cure of a powerful healer to which is Ardyn, or the ancient prophecy of the Cosmic Divine Crystalline. A prophecy that began years after mankind existed. The prophecy shaded in mystery only is told that one, either man or woman will destroy this plague once and for all and free everyone from the plague from hell. But yet it didn't say how or when.

Ardyn walked along the path in the dark. While he walked he had to slice down demons in his path. His weapon was spirit bond weapons that he could summon at will. These weapons was spiritual that could turn solid and his aura was a reddish purple color. It also gave sparkles of the same color to each time it clashed with say a weapon. One of the demons he had to struck down was an imp with a small blade that tried to defend itself. Clashing against the blade made these small sparkles of the steel on steel.

After fighting them off and making it to a nearby outpost he settled in for the night and rested with his mind thinking over what his brother said and sighed closing his eyes just wanting things to be peaceful for eternity.

He woke up in the morning hearing noise outside of the inn he was staying in and walked out to see Gratia calling out for him.

Ardyn walked out and hugged Gratia.

"Gratia, why are you here what's wrong?" Ardyn asked her.

"It's your brother, he's ordering for a skirmish across the lands to kill anyone who's plagued." She said to him.

Ardyn looked at her and rubbed his forehead trying to think.

"You are the oldest, you could overthrow him and take the throne Ardyn. You could end this." She suggested.

"And become a tyrant? I heal people, I save people from the plague of the starscourge. I won't do that." He said to her.

She looked at him worried.

"Gratia, I will go to the shrine of the Cosmic Divine Crystalline and pray to what I'm meant to do." He said to her and hugged her.

They both held one another with their foreheads touching.

"I love you." She said.

"And I love you even more." He told her kissing her forehead and walking off.

As Ardyn walked off he thought over the decisions going on and the growing problem of the starscourge. He walked off into the desert alone.

A day went by and he arrived at the sacred canyon and at one end of it was a small shrine that was crumbling away.

Ardyn got on his knee's and began to pray.

"I beg you, to give me strength. I do not know what I'm supposed to do. I want to see this starscourge end but at the same time I cannot allow what my brother is doing. He is my flesh and blood. I care for the people, I care for everything." He said to it.

Suddenly the aura around him glowed.

Ardyn remained silent feeling it, letting it flow around him and then in his mind, he knew what he had to do.

"I see." Ardyn said opening his eyes slowly.

"Then I shall save everyone. I will take the crown as king of the world to protect all that are weak. For us all to work together to push back this great evil." Ardyn said with a smile looking at the sky.

Ardyn gave a final bow to the shrine and suddenly an earthquake happened which crumbled the rest of the shrine away leaving him speechless.

"Then I guess it is what must be done." Ardyn said and took his leave.

When he returned to the tree he once laid against he met Gratia there who was resting. It was already dark and the moon was out with the millions of stars in the sky.

"It's a lovely night." Gratia said smiling.

Ardyn sat beside her smiling at her and looking up at the stars with his arm around her.

"What must you do?" She asked him.

"I will confront my brother and demand the throne, but I felt I am to rule everything and to unite everyone to fight against this starscourge. I seen it, a very strange vision. I don't even know how to describe it." He said to her.

"To rule everything is a hard task." She told him.

"Please don't let the power get to your head?" She asked.

"Hahaha, Gratia I do not plan too." Ardyn chuckled.

"What did the vision show you?" She asked.

"Bits and pieces. I saw the starscourge, I seen its nasty darkness. It is from hell itself. It plagues out of hell to take the planet but I saw in this vision, I seen many planets go dark, the stars above us go black. I seen this thing take over everything, infinite forces of demons. It was unending. Yet I seen myself standing in front of them to fight them. and yet at the same time, I thought I seen you." Ardyn said.

"Thought?" She asked.

"It looked like you but something was off. I don't know how to explain it." Ardyn said frowning thinking on it.

"Let's think about this tomorrow. For now, let's fall asleep please?" She asked him.

Ardyn smiled and rested back against the tree as she laid on his shoulder. Both watched the stars together, something they loved to do. Eventually they both fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Somnus sat on his throne looking at prisoners that was plagued and snapped his fingers and thus his soldiers sliced their heads off and dragged them outside to burn.

"Bring me in the next ones." Somnus said sighing.

Suddenly Somnus felt something and stood up looking back.

"Sir?" A soldier asked him.

"Stay here, I just need to check something alone." Somnus ordered walking off.

Somnus walked to the back and approached a book of the starscourge and read a page of it then grinned.

"I think I know how to end this once and for all." Somnus said chuckling.

Meanwhile, Ardyn was in a village healing more people from the plague

One being a child who he smiled at patting her head and handing her an apple he bought.

"Alright, little one. That mucky monster won't stick onto you again and poison you." Ardyn said poking her nose making her giggle.

Gratia watched this smiled and approached him when he got done.

"Do you want a kid one day?" She asked nudging him.

Ardyn just made a nervous chuckle.

"I don't know. I wouldn't want him or her to grow up in such a dangerous world, at least until the starscourge is over." Ardyn said to her.

Both of them was approached by the royal guardsmen.

"Ardyn. Your brother is bringing everyone from all neighboring villages to the kingdom for a special announcement. He wishes for you to come." The royal guard said.

Ardyn was shocked as well as Gratia and both looked at one another.

"Of course." Ardyn said with a nod.

The soldier nodded and walked off to announce this to others in the village.

"I wonder whats going on." Gratia asked confused.

"I do not know but whatever it is, I bet it isn't good. This wasn't apart of the vision." Ardyn said rubbing his head thinking.

"Visions change depending on the flow of the future." Gratia said shrugging.

Suddenly he noticed a Faunus human being tackled by two of the guards.

"Hold it!" Ardyn shouted.

The Faunus was struggling under them.

"What did he do?" Ardyn asked.

"He is a Faunus and doesn't belong in the kingdom boarders!" One of the soldiers said and threw the Faunus off to the side.

"Get out of here!" The soldier yelled making the Faunus humanoid run off.

Ardyn frowned seeing that and the soldiers walked off as if nothing happened.

"They discriminate those that aren't full humans than those that are Faunus humans. Just because they either have horns, ears, tails make it like they are monsters when they aren't the true monsters." Ardyn said with a sigh.

"I wonder what he is doing out this far." Gratia asked.

Ardyn noticed he was still nearby and walked toward him.

"Excuse me." Ardyn asked making the Faunus timid trying to hide.

"Do not worry, I mean no harm. I wish to ask what you are doing away from your tribe." Ardyn asked.

"I am just trying to gather some food for my family. Demons attacked our tribe and only four of us are left." The Faunus said.

Ardyn gave him a basket of what was left of his food making the Faunus speechless for a moment.

"T-thank you." The Faunus said taking it.

"Hurry and go before the soldiers come back." Ardyn said.

The Faunus nodded and took off quickly.

"Even the demons attack them." Gratia said sighing.

"We should unite everyone against the demons, not just our own race. Faunus are native to this planet as we are." Ardyn said.

"That's harder than saying it." Gratia said.

Ardyn suddenly felt his head pound and then a vision hit him right then and there.

He suddenly seen millions of demons running in some land, possibly on Earth and millions more behind them running at something, Ardyn didn't know what but it was heading toward him and what was around him.

Then he seen the image of a girl looking like Gratia standing there alone to face them then it changed and went back to it again until his vision suddenly ended.

He woke up seeing Gratia looking down at him in worry as he was laying on the ground.

"Ardyn?" Gratia asked.

"I'm fine just another vision. We should prepare to go to the kingdom." Ardyn suggested getting up.

He didn't say anything else making Gratia worried.

Ardyn thought on what he had to do and nodded to himself and gently took ahold of Gratia's hand as they walked together making her smile and they got into the crowd that was leaving to the kingdom with royal guard escort.


	4. Chapter 4

Once they arrived it was already night time and the castle was heavily guarded.

Ardyn and Gratia was inside the main hall and nearby the throne.

"I don't see him anywhere." Ardyn said looking around.

"Welcome all!" Somnus yelled approaching inside.

Everyone began to cheer as he approached the main hall.

"Everyone I give you god sent news! I have found a solution to the starscourge problem!" Somnus yelled out.

Everyone suddenly cheered in happiness.

Ardyn and Gratia, however, was skeptical.

"What has he found." Gratia questioned.

"Ah my brother! The man who shall save us!" Somnus said holding his hand out to his brother.

Ardyn walked toward him a bit uneasy.

"Somnus?" Ardyn asked looking down at his brother curiously.

"Do not worry Ardyn. I have a plan." Somnus said to him.

"Everyone! Ardyn has cured so many families hasn't he not!?" Somnus asked everyone.

Everyone cheered on.

"Ardyn Izunia Gorgon!" Somnus shouted.

Ardyn looked at his brother curiously on this attitude of his.

Suddenly, Ardyn's body moved against his will.

"W-what?" Ardyn said in shock.

"It is said that the demon spawns from a chanting the following words of Prima Voltosia Delvestia!" Somnus said and suddenly there was an uneasy feeling.

People began to stop cheering and look shocked.

Ardyn couldn't move his body and yet his legs kept working against his will.

The guards brought in the girl he gave an apple too and part of her arm was infected.

"Ardyn here shall slay the child and with the following words chanted we shall summon the demon queen herself to bargain!" Somnus shouted.

Suddenly everyone didn't know what to do.

Ardyn didn't know how his body was being controlled but noticed Somnus' left hand twitching with his fingers, he was using a control power on him. How he got it was unknown but possibly learning of the spell the same with the chanting.

Ardyn glared at his brother as his brother grinned.

Suddenly against Ardyn's will he took his knife from his belt and put it up to the girls throat.

Gratia didn't know what to do as the guards kept everyone back, and everyone was horrified at Ardyn.

"Do it." Somnus said.

Suddenly Ardyn's eyes didn't leave the girls as she looked at him in fear, and then his blade slit her across the throat. Eventually in a second, killing her.

"No... No!" Ardyn shouted.

Suddenly the darkness swirled where the girl laid and consumed her body, and a black fog emerged and coming out was a black large snake like demon.

Ardyn didn't know what to do. His mind was racing and he fell to his knee's.

Somnus at the mean time approached the demon and bowed.

"I offered the girl as a sacrifice. I wish to bargain." Somnus asked smirking.

The demon queen looked at him then to Ardyn smelling the darkness in him.

"He took much of our essence into him." The Demon Queen hissed.

"He healed much of the villagers, yet that isn't the point you see I want-" Somnus began to say.

Suddenly Ardyn grabbed a guards sword and flung it right at Somnus who blocked it with his own.

"What are you doing!?" Somnus said in shock.

Ardyn, now was angry and kept on attacking his brother in front of the villagers.

"See everyone! He's truly become a savage!" Somnus shouted as he tried to defend his life.

Gratia ran to try to stop Ardyn. Then Somnus seen his chance and threw his sword and impaled Gratia instead of Ardyn through her back out of her chest.

Ardyn looked at this, his mind lost and watched her fall onto the floor.

The Demon Queen hissed and slithered back into the portal.

"Wait no! No I came to bargain!" Somnus shouted at the portal as it then disappeared.

"Damn it!" Somnus growled looking back to Ardyn.

"You murdered a innocent girl! Everyone you seen what he did!" Somnus said to the villagers that was speechless

The Villagers looked at Ardyn in disgust and yet he kept his eyes on dying Gratia.

"Ardyn..." Gratia coughed out blood looking at him.

"Gratia- Don't... no don't please don't!" Ardyn cried out.

Suddenly people began to threw stuff at him, not caring of what was going on.

Somnus slowly began to grin holding the hilt of his blade tightly approaching his brother.

"You ruined my plan..." Somnus said ready to use that same control power again.

Ardyn suddenly lost it.

The darkness inside of him from consuming the plague finally showed and his face and body had black veins, black blood flow.

Ardyn summoned his spirit bond weapon and curved it up slicing off his brothers left hand to end the control power.

"Agh!" Somnus shouted in pain.

Ardyn then summoned all of his spirit bond weapons and began to go ballistic shooting them everywhere spraying attack fire across everyone in the room. Cutting down civilians and guards alike.

Somnus in fear tried to run only to be pulled back with dark power bringing his neck to Ardyn's grip.

"Brother! Don't- don't do this!" Somnus pleaded.

"I'm not your brother, I'm a demon!" Ardyn shouted and stabbed his brother into his chest and out his back and then threw his body to the side.

Ardyn looked around in the room and gave a hateful look as the darkness began to take him.

"Embrace it! Yes! This feels right!" Ardyn yelled laughing menacingly.

Ardyn then looked at Gratia's body and then, began to cry until stopping himself and getting angry.

"There is no hope for this world. There is no hope for any of it." Ardyn said in anger.

Suddenly the darkness consumed him, the plague he took from people that he embedded in his body began to corrupt him. His face began to show black veins and blackness around his eyes, with his own eyes turning black with his iris' glowing yellow. The black mist surrounded him and all of the demon powers and immortality was granted to him, he became the most powerful being known in the galaxy.

"Ah!" Ardyn shouted in pain feeling this.

"Finally... I have power, I will rule it all. I will make everyone pay." He growled.

He looked up to the roof shouting at God.

"You hear me! I will rule it all! I will get revenge for my Gratia!" He shouted out.

The darkness, the demon queen in the shadows began to grin watching this and disappear.

Ardyn let out a sigh and his appearance returned again to hide what he truly looked like now.

"Black Blood." Ardyn said chuckling. In latin, is means Demon Blood. The blood of his lineage now. The Gorgon Family lineage.

Ardyn took his leave from the castle, only to kill the remaining guards and to leave the place and the country forever- heading into the dark lands.


	5. Chapter 5

In a year the starscourge vanished from the world, one being the destruction of the kingdom that was why but some like Ardyn speculate it had to do with the Cosmic Divine Crystalline taking its time to suck away the gateways from the underworld to the planet. Yet it was unknown.

In that time Ardyn lived away from everywhere and studied alchemy.

"You want to see what a monster can do..." Ardyn said to himself.

The darkness in him still with him as the star scourge ultimately took him but yet his mind was still there and aware. He became the demon king without realizing it.

Ardyn was taking some of his own blood out and putting it in an odd pot of boiling liquid of sorts.

He began to add different blood of things and a few other stuff like minerals.

"I will make a lineage that can help me get my revenge... I want the Cosmic Divine Crystalline to be mine." Ardyn said to himself smirking.

The pot suddenly burst of power with steam covering the room and he knew it was ready.

Ardyn suddenly began to chant with the alchemy power and thus creating, a baby in front of him from the dark mist.

"A child of black blood, my cursed blood." Ardyn said looking at it as it slept.

"You my boy shall be the beginning of my revenge." Ardyn said chuckling.

"He took my right to be the first king of this world, he took my pride, my reputation, my destiny and most of all, my Gratia! I will take everything from everyone! No one will tell me my destiny anymore! I will make sure all things disappear forever!" Ardyn shouted.

Ardyn looked at the baby and grinned.

"You will begin my plan for revenge, my revenge to make all things fall! The Cosmic Divine Crystalline is mine to control to do to the universe what I want! I just need to reach it and whoever does, can do to the universe what they want!" Ardyn said smirking.

Suddenly he had another vision, this one showing him what would come.

He seen Serenity, who looked like Gratia. Standing there to save everyone.

"Ah, so you are of my lineage. I won't let this future happen. I will stop it before it even happens... yet you are the only one who could unlock the location to the Cosmic Divine Crystalline I see... I shall look into this and bide my time. Then, I shall finally get my revenge. My revenge for everything that used me like this so-called destiny." Ardyn said chuckling.

"And then Serenity, I will kill you to make sure my goal is achieved." Ardyn said smirking to himself.

"Oh, how I have to wait... a good thing I'm immortal then." Ardyn said with a sigh and walked over to mark a line on the wall.

Ardyn took the baby to an orphanage in Rome only to leave a tag on its last name and walked off.

"Let it begin." Ardyn said chuckling.

* * *

Back at the present after CDC EP 12.

Ardyn looked at the planet with the others that came with him and too ka deep inhale of the air.

"Such a clean climate. Much like what Earth was so long ago." Ardyn said to himself.

"The Cosmic Divine is here, I can feel it. Oh Gratia, my revenge is so near I can touch it." Ardyn said smirking.

"You okay?" Urashiki asked who accompanied him.

"Hm? I will be happy once we reach the Cosmic Divine Crystalline." Ardyn said putting on his fedora.

"My scanner shows that there is an odd reading of anomaly that way, a very long ways off." Colress said who joined them.

"Let us go then." Ardyn said walking that direction and chuckling to himself.

However, behind him, was Echidna and her two twin daughters.

"My revenge is soon at hand." Echidna said smirking evily.

"Mother, what is our true purpose?" Anaconda asked.

"Why are we following Ardyn when you have your own plan?" Python asked.

"Our purpose is that he created our family because of my influence when he killed my original body. My spirit had to leave to find a host... so I resided in his plagued body in wait for when I was strong enough to emerge as one of the lineage that I am now... I wish to summon the starscourge to the entire universe. And the Cosmic Divine Crystalline is the answer." Echidna said and revealing what she was in the past, the Demon Queen.

"Yet you died by Drayconivous and his friends?" Anaconda asked.

"A set back unexpected, yet now I will be extra careful now that you two resurrected me." She said and let out a sigh of pleasure.

"I can feel the spirits in me in pain, ah how beautiful it is. I will plague the entire universe, and I shall rule." Echidna said grinning evily.

"Ardyn wants to destroy it all." Python said.

"A shame then he will be disappointed." Echidna scoffed.

Echidna was a void. A void that could never be stopped, and the proof of true evil.

"We shall help you mother." Both twins said.

They watched on as Ardyn walked toward the mountains leading the group and followed acting as if joining his cause.

"My revenge is close for us Gratia..." Ardyn whispered.

In the far distance, however, was the spirit of Gratia who looked on in fear and began to fade away.

Ardyn, the chosen savior of the galaxy, only to become the very evil he swore to destroy.

Love is a powerful thing...

The End is Near...

Cosmic Divine Crystalline: EP XIII is next after this


End file.
